Kiwi Ready to Take On Internationals at Queen St Golden Mile

Top Kiwi Ready to Take On Internationals at AUT Queen
Street Golden Mile

Top Kiwi hope, Hamish Carson, is
confident of a strong showing in the elite men’s race at
the AUT Queen Street Golden Mile on Monday despite the
quality of the international competition.

The three-time
winner of the New Zealand senior 1500m title - his most
recent success coming at Mt Smart last weekend, Carson (25)
is used to flying under the radar with middle distance
running lacking the profile of former years. But few in the
race will have anywhere near the coaching pedigree he can
call on or the close link with one of the world’s all-time
running greats.

In Carson’s corner will be Arch Jelley,
the seemingly ageless coaching guru who more than 40 years
ago took into his care a young South Auckland runner, with
flowing blond hair and boundless talent by name of John
Walker. The rest, as they say, is history - plated in
gold.

During a career spanning 20 years and three decades
(1972-1992) he was the first athlete to run more than 100
sub-4 minute miles, the first to break 3m 50s for the mile,
won the 1976 Olympic 1500 gold medal and held 5 world
records, including his miracle mile of 3m 49.4s at
Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1975.

Behind much of that success
lay the meticulous planning by coach Jelley who, now into
his 91st year, still spends more time than he should helping
others. And for the last eight years, by long-distance, he
has coached Carson to three national 1500 titles and,
earlier this year, to victory in the NZ half
marathon.

Between his running Carson also spent four years
at Victoria University achieving First Class Honours in
ecology and bio-diversity and now works as a Botanist in
Wellington. ”And through it all Arch was always been very
supportive of my tertiary study even though it was messing
with my running,” he says.

“I couldn’t have done it
without his patience and wisdom. Few have the same knowledge
of what it takes to get to the top in sport and I count
myself very lucky that he has invested so much time, for no
reward, into developing me as a runner.”

He says having
heard so much about the previous Queen Street miles and
countless stories about the achievements of his talented
star athlete from coach Jelley that he didn’t hesitate to
enter this year’s Queen Street Golden Mile. “I’m in
good shape and I know I couldn’t be in better
hands.”

He says nothing would give him greater pleasure
than to win the race reprised by his boyhood hero, Sir John
Walker and the Find Your Field of Dreams Foundation. Its aim
is to provide Aucklanders, young and old, the chance to
experience the thrill of running in the footsteps of
champions and, at the same time generate some revenue to
support the work of the Foundation. More details are at www.queenstreetmile.co.nz

Heading the
international line-up for the elite men’s mile are three
Australians, Ryan Gregson, Collis Birmingham and Brett
Robinson, plus US Collegiate runner Miles Batty. Birmingham
and Robinson will be fresh from good performances at the
recent World Cross Country Championships in Poland, where
they finished 8th and 29th respectively.

The elite
women’s field is headed by Kiwi 2012 Olympic 1500m
semi-finalist Lucy van Dalen, Australia’s Zoe Buckman and
Susan Kuijken (Netherlands). All three have been training in
Melbourne for the last 6 weeks, but unlike the other two,
van Dalen has resisted track appearances.

Her first
competition for 7 weeks was the NZ Athletic Championships
last weekend where she won her first national senior 1500m
title. “I’m where I wanted to be at this stage of the
year with my training and have a very solid base behind
me,” she says. “Zoe and Susan have sharpened up and
could be more race ready them me. But we are all very
competitive, have equal 1500m times and I’m expecting it
will be a fast mile.”

The Queen Street Golden Mile
Easter Monday afternoon starts with a lunch hosted by Mayor
Len Brown at the Cloud on Queen’s Wharf followed by about
16 races spread over four hours, including juniors,
veterans, over 20s, a corporate team event, an Auckland
Citizen’s mile - open to anyone over the age of 16 -
culminating in an elite men’s and women’s mile around
4.45pm. Special guest at the event will be former Olympic
gold medallist and world 1500m and mile world record holder
Steve Ovett.

Find Your Field of Dreams Foundation Chief
Executive, Craig Pollock, says the good form of the
internationals should ensure the elite miles “are the
competitive races we hoped they would be. But the event is
also about enabling as many people as possible to experience
the thrill of a street mile. And all those who enter the
Auckland Citizens mile will receive a certificate with their
officially registered times recorded.”

The Queen Street
Golden Mile has the support of Mayor Len Brown as well as
Auckland Council, Athletics Auckland and the NZ Olympic
Committee. More details about the Queen Street Golden Mile
are at www.queenstreetmile.co.nz

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